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Bernadette
came to her local LIFE House desperate for help. Fleeing domestic violence,
pregnant with her third child, and with nowhere else to turn, she didn’t think
it would be possible to over-come longstanding issues and repair her
relationship with her family.
Her Support Plan worked on building confidence
and self-esteem and together with her Support Worker, Bernadette developed a
valuable network of friends and family to ensure she was happy and safe when she
was ready to leave our care.
*not real name
LIFE condemns attempts to violate the right to Conscientious Objection
The national pro-life charity, LIFE is dismayed at the news that two Catholic midwives in Scotland are being forced to supervise staff performing abortions.
The ruling by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde - that forcing midwives Mary Doogan and Concepta Wood to delegate staff and supervise terminations is not a breach of the conscientious objection clause - is most baffling.
LIFE Spokesperson Joanne Hill said: “Even though the midwives may not be physically performing the abortion procedure, requiring them to supervise the process means they would be involved and complicit in the termination of human life. Forcing these midwives to act against their religious principles is an obvious and blatant violation of the conscientious objection clause and their human rights.
It represents an attempt to whittle away at the law giving health professionals the right to abstain from involvement in abortion procedures and should be condemned in the strongest terms. We commend these brave midwives for standing up for their rights and taking this matter to court. We urge the Department of Health to clarify the conscientious objection rule so that NHS bodies do not feel they have the right to compel workers to act against their religious and ethical beliefs.